AKB0048: Mirai no Tsubasa - Wings of the Future
by WildZephyr
Summary: A DES Major with bad blood with AKB0048 falls into their hands, but the group wasn't as she had thought..! Ongoing series, updates weekly.
1. Chapter 1: Revolution

_Disclaimer: I do not own AKB48, AKB0048 or any related franchise._

_Author's Note: I am a HUGE fan of AKB0048, so I really hope this turned out well. This story takes place in a parallel timeline to the original series, just added an OC to the original cast. Hope to be able to portray the characters properly as well as their interactions with the OC. The beginning of the story may start off slow but I promise it will get better! Enjoy!_

* * *

"_Mom, look at all the colors! The singers are all so pretty…"_

"_Mom, what's DES? Why are all the people running?"_

"_Mom? Mom, what's wrong? Mom?"_

* * *

"Ah!" Fukuda Haru awoke with a start. Cold sweat beaded her forehead as she sat on her bed, gasping for air.

"Ma'am, what's wrong?!" A guard barged into the room, face filled with worry and concern.

Haru took another moment to catch her breath before replying, "It's nothing, Corporal. Just a little bad dream, that's all." I paused for a moment. "You are relieved of your duties. Go and take a break, you'll need the energy later."

The Corporal remained unconvinced, but threw her a salute and left the room. Haru sighed and glanced at her watch.

"T-minus one hour till our destination… Lancastar, huh." she muttered to herself.

Haru got out of bed and got dressed, pulling her uniform neatly over herself. Attaching the rank of Major to her sleeve, she smoothed her hair and left the room.

Staring out of the battleship's window, she gazed at the infinite star ocean for a while before proceeding to the command deck.

"Attention!" the guard on the other side of the door yelled, and the entire deck's staff went rigid. "Good afternoon, ma'am."

"At ease," Haru said, and the tension filling the room subsided. "It's afternoon already, is it? I can never tell when I'm in space."

When the guard she was talking to remained silent, Haru continued, "I'm just like any of you, you know, a human being. There's no reason to hold me in such high regards when you've only been my crew for about a week."

"Tis' how it is, ma'am," the guard replied.

Haru nodded in acknowledgement but couldn't help feeling a sense of loneliness in her heart.

* * *

"Say, Sergeant, what do you think about our efforts against entertainment?" Haru asked.

"I don't have any personal opinions, ma'am. I just have a family to feed," the guard replied.

"As I, Sergeant," Haru said. _I would rather not admit it, but I have to provide for my father, even if it means not being allowed to see him again; even if it means I have to work for my mother's murderers._

"Ma'am! We are now entering the measurable gravity field of Lancastar," an operator shouted.

"Understood. Disengage hyperdrive," Haru commanded.

The ship rumbled violently as the dualium engines powered down.

"Ma'am, I'm detecting several pings from the planet… They're hostiles! AKB0048 is currently on Lancastar!"

"What?!" Haru yelled. A screen appeared on the glass panels of the ship, and on it displayed the Senbatsu members singing and dancing to Aitakatta,

"This song… This damn song!" Haru growled. "All hands, prepare for engagement! I want-"

"Hold it, Major," a voice echoed throughout the deck.

"Colonel Yoshino!" Haru said, springing into a salute towards the man who had appeared on another screen.

"This operation is under my jurisdiction. Turn back where you came from immediately and do not interfere," the Colonel commanded.

"But… please understand, Sir! I've worked for DES for twelve years just for this day! I have to ensure that this evil will never claim another life. I have to settle this vendetta against AKB0048!" Haru pleaded.

"I apologize, but this is neither up to me nor you to decide. I give you one more chance, Major. Leave now or I will be forced to shoot you down," the Colonel said.

"What?! What is this madness?! Who gave you that order?!" Haru yelled.

"I warned you, Major. If this would fulfill your final wish, I'll have you know that it was Sir Sono himself," the figure spoke before disappearing.

The resounding silence that was left was suffocating. Haru's mind went blank for a moment before getting into gear once more. "We're leaving," Haru commanded, biting her lip.

When no one made any movement, Haru spoke once more, "Did none of you hear me? We are lea-"

She paused and gaped at the monitor. The Colonel's battleship had already begun charging its particle cannon.

"Engage shields, now!" Haru yelled urgently.

"Shields charging at 37%, ma'am!"

"We'll never make it…"

"Damn this… Damn it all! I… What have I been doing for these past twelve years?"

A beam of light shot across the screen… and after that it was darkness.

* * *

"Ugh…" Haru slowly opened her eyes.

"Ah! She's awake!"

Haru shook her head to clear the fog, and when her vision cleared up, she found herself lying on a bed in a bunk like room.

"Where am I?" Haru asked, clutching her head from dizziness.

"Akibastar!"

"I don't think she was asking about the planet she's on, you know."

"You're in AKB0048's headquarters!"

"Hey, hey, are you sure we're supposed to tell her that?"

_AKB0048?! _Haru's mind sharpened in an instant. Reaching for her holster, she was shocked to realize that her pistol wasn't there. "Tch, I guess that's it for me," Haru muttered. She looked around her and counted a total of nine girls surrounding her bed. "Why did you save me? I am part of DES, and you know it fully well."

"Well, you _are _wearing a DES uniform, but…" a girl with short pink hair and a green ribbon tied on a side said. "AKB0048 doesn't really distinguish between whose lives are more important."

"How nonsensical," Haru muttered.

"What was that?" a girl with long blue hair asked, playing with a floating blue jelly-like thing.

"AKB0048 killed my mother. How can you call that taking into account the lives of the public?! You know fully well that DES troops are ready to use lethal force to stop you, and yet you persist on dragging the innocent lives of many into your little farce," Haru ended bitterly.

"I am sorry to hear that, I really am," a girl with red spiky hair replied.

"What do you know?" Haru scoffed.

"My father was killed by DES too. By people like you," the girl said. Haru was taken aback, and when she looked in the other girl's eyes, she saw not a trace of contempt, only warmth. "My only reason to live was to eradicate every single DES out there. But I realized after a while that living a life of vengeance was simply… lonely. I'm sure you understand what I mean."

_Loneliness…_ Haru knew full well what she meant. "You may have given up, but I will not."

"Given up? Me? I haven't given up," the red haired girl answered. "I was moved. Moved by the force known as entertainment. It made me realize that an eye for an eye will merely establish an eternal cycle of hatred and vengeance. Even if I had wiped out every single DES out there, what would that have accomplished? I would merely have caused more kids to live a life of misery."

Haru's eyes widened. The girl continued, "I thought to myself: Why not use this force that had changed me so to improve the lives of others? I'm sure my father would have wanted that."

Haru began to shudder. She asked herself the same question she had been asking for twelve years: _What had I been trying to do?_

A woman with short blonde hair walked into the room. "If you understand now, I hope that you will forgive us for your loss and that you will not pursue and prosecute us AKB0048 any longer. For our sake and for the universe's sake, do not let that happen."

"Tsubasa-san!" the girls said in unison.

"I… I will consider your proposition."

"I know!" a girl with long wavy pink hair said. "Let her witness one of our concerts! That should be able to change her mind."

The other girls concurred and Tsubasa, having pondered this solution, answered, "Very well. Let us hold a one-time private concert for this Major…"

"Haru," Haru answered, doubtful.

* * *

_End notes: Well, I hope this is decent enough for a beginning chapter. I know it's rushed, but I wanted to get off the backstory ASAP and really get into things. Also, I will update with a new chapter weekly, so stay tuned!_


	2. Chapter 2: The Spirit of AKB0048

_Disclaimer: I do not own AKB48, AKB0048 or any related franchise._

_Author's Note: Second chapter! Nothing much to comment, except that it occurs in around the same time as Episode 14, or Next Stage: Episode 1._

* * *

Atamistar.

Haru sat on one of the seats in the Katyusha while Tsubasa stood beside her, face wiped of emotion. They stared at the screen where a huge number of people had gathered, awaiting the start of the concert that they had been promised.

"I thought that this was to be a private concert?" Haru asked. Her eyes swept across the mass of fans crowded in the audience.

"You can't really call a concert a concert without an appreciative audience," Tsubasa smiled.

Haru observed the audience again and thought to herself, '_This isn't unlike what I experienced when I was younger. In fact, nothing seems different.'_

"You do realize I have watched one of their concerts before?" Haru asked suddenly.

Tsubasa answered without looking at her, "I am well aware. Know this, Major, that this concert wasn't really held for the purpose of convincing you to become an AKB0048 fan. You have the freedom to leave, if you so wish, right now."

Haru considered that option, but stayed in her seat anyway. She had a ton of things in her mind to think about.

"I suppose it won't be fair to not give them a chance," Haru conceded.

Tsubasa didn't speak for a while, then closed her eyes and said, "Your mother's death… I have to admit that we were an indirect cause of that. I will not push any blame away from the group as a whole."

"So you're saying AKB0048 is in the wrong after all?" Haru asked in a deadpan monotone.

To her surprise, Tsubasa smiled. "It seems the show is about to begin."

The music began to blare after that sentence, and Haru's ears pricked a little in discomfort.

_"Yoru no sora kagayaku hoshi wa_

_Nanoku kounen no kanata_

_Tatoe fukai no zetsubou ga_

_Mugen no yami to nattemo"_

As the spotlights glared at the flap of the Flying Get which had opened into a stage, Haru looked on as the nine girls that had previously appeared to her as simply girls transformed into radiant performers. Each of them sang and danced with their utmost effort; Haru could tell that much. But that wasn't enough to convince her.

She had joined DES when she was a mere eight years old. Since then, she had been training as hard, if not more, with firearms, battle tactics and leading men on the battlefield, all along driven by vengeance. She had sworn to take down AKB0048, and once that was done, to destroy DES along with them.

But now, she was no longer sure of what she needed to do.

She looked away from the brilliance of the main performance into the sea of people and her heart skipped a beat. Her lack of interest turned into awe, having noticed the looks of enthusiasm on the fans' faces.

Haru was completely blown away by the general excitement that the audience exuded. She never knew that a human could exhibit such emotion. She felt… alive.

"Why..? Why are they so obsessed with entertainment? What is so great about it?" Haru asked in a whisper.

To her right, Tsubasa laughed. Haru turned to face her and was surprised to see the same aura of liveliness in her.

"This is entertainment, Haru. There are times when humans need a time to completely let go of the troubles in life and forget the negativity. We are here to provide that relief for the whole of the universe. We are AKB0048."

Tsubasa continued, "To answer your previous question, I do not know whether we are in the wrong. We are merely humans. Who are we to judge who is right and who is wrong?"

_"Hito wa umarete, hito wa shin de yuku_

_Nikutai wa horobiru yo"_

Haru muttered, "No one… lives forever, huh?"

_"Yume wa reincarnation"_

"I wonder if Mom is in peace now."

_"Ikutsu me no inochi de kanau mono nano ka?"_

"How many lives would I have to take for me to bury the hatred?"

A deafening roar from the audience signaled the end of the song. Haru found herself, to her surprise, in tears.

"I have been chasing after an endless shadow for twelve years. I think… it's about time I stopped," Haru spoke after much consideration to Tsubasa.

Tsubasa looked pleased with her, and replied, "Thank you, Haru."

"Could I finish watching the concert before I leave?" Haru asked, once again observing the audience's reaction to the concert.

Tsubasa didn't answer, but merely smiled. She thought to herself, _'What an interesting individual. She seems more focused on the audience than to the performance itself. If only she hadn't been caught up in her tragic past, she could've been…'_

An explosion rocked the ship. "DES?! This is supposed to be a protected planet!" Tsubasa exclaimed.

"That is an affirmative, Tsubasa-san!" one of the operators shouted. "We have multiple bogies converging towards Atamistar! What are your orders?!"

"Launch the Senbatsu! We have to protect the civilians at all cost!" Tsubasa waved a hand at the screen, and the Senbatsu, who were already in standby in their Live Assault Suits, fired off.

"Takamina, you're in charge of the protection of the audience. The rest of you, lethal violence is allowed, for all the enemies this time round are non-piloted," Tsubasa ordered.

"Got it!" was the response from the defense team.

Haru stood up and asked in a strangely calm voice, "Tsubasa-san, do you have any more Assault Suits?"

"Yes, but… Wait, you're not thinking of…" Tsubasa gasped.

"I am a Major of DES, after all. I will be fine. Also, I have a few questions for my fellow soldier about attacking a planet under interplanetary protection," Haru answered, eyes flashing with rage. When she was finished, she ran off towards the cockpit where she had seen Assault Suits stored.

"Girls, listen up! The DES Major will be joining you, so do not misfire! I'm also putting her in charge of this affair, so listen to her commands and _follow them, _understand?" Tsubasa yelled into the intercom.

"What..?" Takamina couldn't believe her ears. But orders were orders and she didn't want to botch things up, so she reluctantly agreed.

Joining up with the rest of the fleet, Haru began to broadcast a message to the opposing mansuits. "DES forces, I am Major Fukuda Haru, and I demand to know whoever is at the helm of this attack!"

A screen opened on the windscreen of Haru's Suit, and a familiar face appeared.

"Major Haru… I'm glad to see you alive and well," Colonel Yoshino said.

"Colonel Yoshino, you twisted murderer! My crew… You killed them all!" Haru hissed, gritting her teeth.

"If you could survive, Major, what makes you think they couldn't?" Yoshino said with a ghost of a smile. Behind him, Haru's crew stepped in.

"You're all safe? Thank goodness…" Haru said to herself. In a louder voice, she spoke, "Atamistar is under the protection of entertainment legislations, Colonel, and I'm sure you know that. The Universal Council will not be happy if they knew about this raid."

"Major, do you honestly think that DES would be that foolish to overlook such an obvious thing? You underestimate the connections of DES. Enough talk, if you do not want history to repeat itself, you will get out of my way," Yoshino finished, and the screen vanished.

"Not if I can help it," Haru muttered under her breath. She counted one, two, three, four, five enemy mansuits in the vicinity.

"Takamina-san, was it?" Haru asked into the intercom. "Could you back me up? I'll need you to ensure that any of the suits won't crash into the audience."

"W-what do you mean?" Takamina was dumbfounded at that request.

"I mean I'll take care of this, so make the audience's lives your main priority!" Haru said as she flew straight into the five enemies, weaving in and out of them and taking them down easily. It was over before Takamina even knew it.

"R-retreat!" Colonel Yoshino ordered. Any remaining droids flew back to the DES mothership, and that itself retreated into space soon after.

"Color me impressed," Tsubasa acknowledged, having witnessed the skill at which Haru had piloted the Suit, even without prior experience. "She has the spirit of AKB0048. Indeed, she'll be a perfect candidate," she said as she watched Haru land near the concert site to check for any casualties.

* * *

Meanwhile, in the Akihabara Underground Temple, a voice rang out in a deep boom, "Tsubasa… Tsubasa… Haru… _Mirai_…"

* * *

_End notes: I hope this properly wraps up Haru's past, although it is very likely that it will be used again in future chapters. Also, the lyrics in this chapter were part of AKB0048 First Stage's ED: Dreams are Forever Reborn. I know it wasn't the song in Episode 14, but I felt the lyrics suited the situation more._


	3. Chapter 3: A New Member!

_Disclaimer: I do not own AKB48, AKB0048 or any related franchise._

_Author's Note: Another week's flown by! The meaning behind the words of Sensei-sensei are about to be revealed!_

* * *

"Morning, Haru-san," Orine greeted, yawning. "You're still here, so I'd assume you like this place, right?" Orine asked, watching her laze about the common room.

"Ahhh… I turned against DES… I have nowhere else to go now, so it's not like a have a choice or anything," Haru groaned.

"Mmm, that really was surprising, though. Your skill at piloting the LAS is really uncanny." Kanata asked, sitting down on the sofa beside Haru, tucking into a plate of bacon and eggs.

"I wonder…" Haru trailed off. "So, what's you girls' itinerary for today?"

"Eh," Nagisa counted off, "Firstly we have a dance session in the morning, followed by a photo shoot, then ending off with a…" Her face fell.

"A what? What's wrong?" Haru asked curiously.

"Shoot for a variety show," Chieri finished. "It's not that apprehensive, you know."

Sonata wailed, "How would you know, you haven't been to one!"

Makoto agreed, "Yeah, and you won't even be participating in this one."

Haru raised an eyebrow, asking, "And why would that be?"

At this point of time, Tsubasa walked into the room and answered, "She has several private photo shoots, so her schedule is already full. Anyway, nice to see you fitting in, Major."

"Ah, I don't mean to stay for long. I'll leave once I am able-" Haru stopped. She knew fully well that she had no way to leave the planet nor find lodgings in Akibastar. She was practically bankrupt with no personal possessions.

"Don't worry about it, Haru-san. You can stay here for as long as you want, right?" Nagisa glanced at Tsubasa, who stood there with the ghost of a smile.

"Sure, Nagisa. However…" Tsubasa paused.

Of course, Haru did not expect to stay for free too. "What will the conditions be?" she asked.

"I want you to join AKB0048… as an understudy."

"EH?!" a chorus of voices rung out as the whole of the Kenkyuusei and Haru exclaimed in surprise.

"Without going through selection?" Makoto asked. "How's that fair?" she grumbled.

"That's right, without going through selection. Haru is to join as one of you girls, go on concerts and everything," Tsubasa said.

"A-are you sure, Tsubasa-san? I don't think I have the aptitude to…" Haru stammered.

"Then let us see, shall we? How about you try one of their dance lessons?" Tsubasa said.

"Eh," Haru didn't really have a choice. It was this or starving on the streets. "Fine then, I'll try my best."

* * *

"Wow, she really has the skills," Yuko commented, watching the ex-DES member mirror the Senbatsu's dance moves to Beginner with just a little error.

"It could be her superior physical ability, but still…" Takamina said.

Yuko nodded, eyes closed, saying, "That innate sense of replication, huh? The song's choreography is being copied almost flawlessly."

Takamina noted a hint of solemnness in Yuko as she said, "That attribute of hers will never allow her to become Center, let alone Center Nova. She will always be at the back, mimicking others. No, I really can't see the bud of radiance that can grow out of her."

Takamina asked Tsubasa who was beside her, "Are you sure about this, Tsubasa-san?"

Tsubasa bit her lip and thought for a while before answering, "I know what you girls mean, but how can this be? Sensei-sensei was the one who recommended her to become a Kenkyuusei."

"Huh? Really?" was the reply from the other two girls.

As the song finished, Haru asked excitedly, "How was my dancing? It was actually more fun than I thought!" She truly smiled for the first time in her life ever since joining DES, and Tsubasa noticed.

"It was bad," Ushiyama said, folding his arms.

Haru flinched at the bluntness of the remark. Her smile dissolved completely and remarked, "Not good enough, huh? I thought I wouldn't be."

_She's taking this way better than I would have liked, _Ushiyama thought. _I should push her a bit more, just to see how she'll respond. _

"So are you going to give up just like that? Like how you gave up on your desire for revenge?" Ushiyama said, knowing full well that he crossed the line.

"Ushiyama-sensei, I will not take action against my benefactors. However, I will have you know that what you said will not pass easily the next time," Haru's eyes glowered warningly.

"If I do not have the capability to join AKB0048, then the time training for it would be much better well spent on the things that I have the aptitude for. It is merely logical that physical work would suit me better," Haru finished.

The tension in the room stiffened. Tsubasa particularly was taken aback, because she had just came to the realization that joining the Kenkyuusei was not what Sensei-sensei had planned for Haru. And while that realization made Tsubasa a bit sad in retrospect, she knew that she had to carry out her duty for the sake of the Future of AKB0048.

"The… Future, huh," Tsubasa muttered. "I understand that it's finally time."

Haru looked at her, confused. Tsubasa continued, "Haru, here's my condition for your stay with us. You will become an Understudy, but not for the Senbatsu."

Tsubasa looked Haru in the eyes, and Haru felt an inexplicable connection between them.

_"You will become an Understudy for the next Manager of AKB0048."_

* * *

_End notes: A particularly short chapter. I'm sorry for the lack of length, but with this chapter, the story should go into full swing now!_


End file.
